Welcome to all new Circle members! Each section of the Circle of Nations newsletter is written 'facing' one of the four sacred winds, beginning with the east, then the south, west and finally the north. This is to honor the old ways. It is to teach and to help us to focus and find the center. I have designed the Native Circle website in the same spirit. I welcome you all to the Circle....

EAST - Wiyohinyanpata - Yellow (Four Winds)My friends and relatives, welcome to 2012. Much has been made of what is to come this year. The apocalypse, the end of the world and so on. Allow me to try and kindly interject my thoughts into this discussion.... Throughout the course of human history, countless dates ‘of significance’ have come and gone with no great cataclysmic event taking place. Most recently, you may recall the ‘Y2K’ moment. A moment when absolutely nothing happened. And there are loads of other examples of this phenomenon, where human beings make predictions about a specific date and/or time, and the date/time passes as normally as any other day. My reason for addressing this is not to say that there are not important, sacred and transforming moments in this life. There are. What I wish to impart is that the moments that change the world are those quiet, humble occasions where some small, seemingly insignificant event forever changes our heart. These moments cannot be predicted, nor can they be pre-affixed to a date and time invented by human beings. Rather, they occur at the precise instant our soul is ready for Spirit to move, and that instant can happen at any moment. Sometimes the most important days in our lives come and go without us even realizing something has shifted. We may look back years later and see just how much those days, which at the time seemed so ordinary, completely changed the course of our life. Having said that, it shouldn’t take a Mayan calendar for us to realize that a great transformation is in the works for humanity and our planet. I see the age of enlightenment coming. I see it in the eyes of my 10 year old grandson who held a pebble in his hand and told me “Grandpa, this pebble is like the earth”, and extending his arm out wide as looked across the vast landscape, concluded “And all this is the universe.” I hear it in the words of my teenage niece who posts a message on facebook firmly asserting “War is disgusting.” And continues by saying that “killing is not the answer.” So, yes, it is true, great change is coming. But that great change is already happening. It has been happening for some time. It is a change inspired by Spirit. And the significant moments, dates and times are not written down on a calendar, they are written in our hearts. They are etched into the souls of a new generation which will rise up and reclaim our world with the power of peace, humility, wisdom and love. May we all look forward to the year 2012 and beyond with great hope. Hope for a world where indeed, killing is not the answer. And hope for a world where we all understand that it is true, our earth is indeed a small pebble in a vast mysterious universe....

SOUTH - Itokagata - Red (Red Earth)A word from Peggy....

Hello Circle of Nations Global familyAcross the globe, reaching for connection, intending peace and understanding, we hope...Can we find peace among us? Is it possible? I believe it is possible! But believing it does not make it so. We must practice it as individuals and extend the peace that passes all understanding to every person, and every living thing that we encounter. We must toss ego to the wind and hold tight to humility and forgiveness. Have we been hurt by others? Of course we have, that is called life. Will others continue to wage war? Of course. But ultimately light will overcome darkness, and as we experience this reality we can become a part of the light. Do I have the answers? No! Am I right? Probably not, therefore I can respect others and not need to direct them or correct them. Life is about each small moment of light and love. And light shines brightest in darkness and love always trumps hate. Lets face each day with this simple prayer: “God show us the way to the light of love, peace, forgiveness and generosity”. May you have a blessed 2012 and may we be on a course of true global peace.

We would love to have you join us at one of our 2012 Retreats. The complete retreat schedule is HERE.

Please fill your life with beautiful art, music and relationships.We can offer you the music at: www.johntwohawks.comAll our music is available for download at itunes

Coming in February!! The NEW 2012 John Two-Hawks Signature Series 'Earthsongs' Flute! Keep your eye on this page for it's arrival!

blessings,Peggy

Connect with John Two-Hawks and his music and videos at: ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

WEST - Wiyohpeyata - Black or Blue (We are STILL Here!)Darkness and Light....True balance is only attained when we find the center. And yet, a life consisting of only resting perfectly balanced in the center, is truly no life at all. We are born to experience. We are supposed to reach out, try and touch, go out on a limb, get burned, feel glory and suffer sadness. We are meant to laugh hysterically, weep uncontrollably, dance without restraint and stumble terribly. Yes, life is about finding the balance. And that place in the center is awesome and wonderful. But it is artificial without the spice of real pain and joy. You see, real balance is not about merely existing between darkness and light, it is about absorbing the powerful flavors, colors and intensity of them both, and living with all of it fully and honestly. And in order to experience all of that, we must go there. We must walk off of our artificial center and jump out of our safety zone. In order to join in on the activities on the playground of life, we must step down from our perch at the center of our nicely balanced teeter-totter. When we do, we will find the ground, in many ways. We will run upon it. We will fall upon it. We will skin our knees upon it. We will dirty our hands and feet in it. We will roll and play on it. And in the end, we will have lived upon it. And by having lived, and laughed, and cried, and shouted, and raged, and giggled, and cheered and reflected upon it, we will ultimately find our anchor, our purpose, our identity and our connection. All of this results in us finding that place we were searching for all along on the center of the teeter-totter - the difference being our balance will be real. It will not be a place we speak of or go to, it will exist within us, it will be us. This is real balance. It is the darkness and the light, coexisting equally within the experiences that shape our life. It frees us to be fully alive in all our moments, good and bad. To be honest with ourselves, and with others. And to be authentic in the way we live. There are no guarantees in this life. So get off that teeter-totter and jump onto the monkey bars! The richness of your whole life is hanging in the balance....

NORTH - Waziyata - White (Words of Wisdom)A meditation offering....

My friends. Usually I offer a few words here. But sometimes, wisdom is best imparted where there are no words. Therefore, on this first newsletter of 2012, I want to invite you to take 5 minutes to watch, listen and meditate. Seek the Spirit as you do, and perhaps more wisdom than I could ever utter or type will find its way into your spirit. Just click the link below....